Penholder



(No Model.) i u 4 A. 1:'. RANSOM.

- PENHOLDBR. N0. 548,929. v Patented 0012. 2 9, 1895.A

`i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT F. RANSOM, OF BURLINGTON, WISCONSIN.'

PENHOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 548,929, dated October 29, 1895. Application filed September 24, 1895. Serial llo. 563,509. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT F. RANsoM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Burlington, in the county of Racine and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Penholders; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specific-ation. Y

My invention relates to clasps for clamping a pen to a penholder; and it has for its object to provide a clasp which will permit the pen to lie between the clasp and the penholder and be clamped securely to the holder by a cam, preferably in the form of a cam-lever, and bearing directly against the penholder; also, in which the clasp will be adjustable to a greater or less extent along thepenholder, so that the end of the penholder may be brought nearer to or fartherfrom the point of the pen, thus alfording a greater or less bearing of the pen on the penholder, and thus giving the desired length of pen-point and adding more or less to the elasticity of the pen; also, in which the under portion of the clasp will afford a bearing or .rest for the end of the second linger in use of the penholder; also, in which the construction of the clasp will serve to prevent the pen and its holder from rolling upon the desk or table when not in use and which will also serve to hold the extreme point of the pen'out of contact with the desk or table when the pen is lying thereon, and in which also the pen can be readily reversed, so as to bring its point beneath the clasp in order that the clasp may cover the point and at the same time secure the pen to the holder, thus permitting the pen and holder to be carried in the `vest pocketl without the pen-point catching in the pocket or any object. The construction of clasp devised furthermore enables the pen to be secured to an ordinary lead-pencil or plain holder without other attachment than the clasp, and it also enables the pen to be detached without grasping the pen or in any wise soiling the fingers in detaching it from the holder.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing `and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the construction and in the combination of elements hereinafter particularly described, and then sought to be specifically defined by the claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, and in which- Figure l is a side elevation of my clasp applied to a penholder. Fig. 2isasimilar view of the same with the pen clamped in reversed position upon a pencil, and Fig. 3 is a perspective of the clasp removed from the holder.

In the drawings, the numerall designates a penholder which may consist of an ordinary wooden or other stick or a lead-pencil, and 2 designates the pen.

The numeral 3 designates the clasp, which is made in such form as to encircle the penholder and has two ears 4 at its lower end, so as to lie beneath the penholder. Between these ears is pivoted a cam 5, which preferably has an extension, which constitutes a lever and will form a cam-lever. This lever when thrown down so as to lie lengthwisev of the penholder will cause the cam to bite against the under side of the penholder, and thus secure and bind the clasp to the holder and at the same time securely clamp the pen to the holder, the rear end of the pen lying between the penholder and the top of the clasp, so that when the cam is thrown into its locking position the clasp will be tightened about the holder and bind the pen thereto. This claspis free to slide back and forth on the holder when the cam is not biting the holder, and thus the end of the penholder can be brought nearer to or farther from the point of the pen and afford a greater or less bearing against the under side of the pen, thereby rendering the pen more orless iexilole, according as the holder is extended xnoreor less under the pen, and at the same time enabling the pen to be extended more or lessibeyond the end of the penholder, and consequently rendering it practically a short or long pen, as desired. The depending ears of the clasp, together with the lever of the cam, form a projection or extension on the under side of the penholder, and will thus constituteabearing IOO or rest for the end of the second linger when the pen is in use. This projection or extension Will also prevent the pen and its holder from rolling upon the desk or table when laid thereon, whether the table has a flat or inclined top. It also affords such an extension or projection as will keep the pen-point from lying directly upon the desk or table, as the projection or extension will cause the penholder to turn over and lie on its side if in laying down the holder and pen it should be carelessly placed on the table with the back of the pen down, and when thus turned on its side the point of the pen will necessarily be` out the necessity of grasping the pen with the lingers, and thus the fingers will not be soiled in the act of removing the pen. If it is desired to carry the pen and the holder in the vest-pocket, the cam is released, so as to loosen the clamp of the clasp on the pen and the pen withdrawn and reversed, so that its point will lie between the penholder and the top of the clasp, thus concealing the pen-point between the clasp and penholder and preventing the possibility of its point catching in the pocket or being in any wise damaged. With the pen-point between the penholder and clasp, asjust described, the cam will be turned by the lever so as to clamp the pen to the holder, and thus securely hold it with its point beneath the clasp and enable it to be carried in the pocket.

It will be observed that the cam bears directly against the under side of the penholder and does not come in contact at all with the pen, and consequently no special form of penholder is required, as the clasp can be slipped over the end of an ordinary lead-pencil or wooden or other penholder without providing it with any other pen-holding means than the adjustable clasp itself.

I have illustrated and described what I consider to be the preferred details of construction of the clasp and operatingcam5but it is as a complete article adapted to be applied by the purchaser to lead-pencils or penholders of the kind mentioned.

Havingl described my invention and set forth its merits, what I claim is- 1. The device for attaching pens to penholders consisting of a clasp adapted to encircle the pen-holder and'pen and provided with a cam adapted to bear against the under side of the pen-holder to secure the clasp and pen to the holder, substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. A device for securing the pen and holder consisting of a clasp adapted to encircle the penholder and pen and provided with ears adapted to lie on the under side of the holder and provided with a cam pivoted to said ears and arranged to bear against the under side of the holder to secure the pen and clasp to the holder, substantially as and for tbe purposes described.

3. A device for securing a pen to a penholder, consisting of a clasp adapted to encircle the pen-holder and pen, and provided with a cam-lever pivoted to the clasp at a point to bear against the pen-holder and clamp the pen thereto by the cam, substantially as and for the purposes described.

4. A device for securing a pen to a penholder, consisting of a clasp adapted to encircle the pen-holder and pen and to be adjusted lengthwise of the pen-holder, and provided With means for locking the clasp to the penbolder in any adjustnlentalong the length of the latter, substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony whereof I aflix `my signature in presence of two witnesses.

vALBERT F. RANSOM. Witnesses: v

EDWIN CALDWELL, G. C. RAsoH. 

